At WesleyLife, we believe Assisted Living is more about the "living" and less about the "assisted"!
Al and his wife, Clarine, are Assisted Living residents at Brio of Johnston, a WesleyLife Community — and Al runs one to three miles every day. He's not a fan of the cold, so he does his running in the community's garage. "It's exactly the right temperature for me to get my heart rate up and still be comfortable!" Al said. "When it gets a little warmer, I'll be eager to try the wonderful trails around the campus."
Al, 84, has been running since childhood; he was on track and cross-country teams in high school and college, and coached both sports throughout his teaching career in Illinois. He says his doctor recently told him that there's no real reason to stop running as he grows older. "He said, 'Al, when you stop moving, that's when you'll have problems,'" Al said.
Al also lifts weights "within reason" in Brio's fitness center. He said he enjoys the community's focus on activity, adding that he doesn't see being an Assisted Living resident in Des Moines as a reason to begin living any differently from the way he's always lived.
"We spend our days the way we want to and have help when we need it -- that's the perfect way to live," he said. "The staff here is very encouraging of my running, and I plan to keep hanging out down there in the garage as long as I'm healthy enough to do so!"
Wondering about Assisted Living in Des Moines? All WesleyLife's eight communities offer it as part of our comprehensive levels of living. Schedule a tour of any WesleyLife Community for Healthy Living today!
